Sir Alex Ferguson has challenged his Manchester United squad telling them
that they should have more pride in their performances as they look to secure a place in the Champions League quarter-finals.
Speaking in the obligatory press conference prior to the Old Trafford clash, Ferguson described United's recent showings as "embarrassing" for players
who he described as having "a decent self-regard".
United can afford to lose 2-0 to Graz and still qualify for the last eight but their manager stressed: "It's not really the result which is important, it's the performance.
"I think we need to get a performance to give us back our trust in the players
and also to know what their capabilities are because they have not been
reaching their capabilities in the last few weeks.
"I want a performance that will have the fans leaping up at times."
Watching the elimination of several other famous European clubs often provides teams with an incentive to play above their usual game. This is something that the United boss felt he had impressed on his players, but he has reiterrated the sentiments ahead of their final group phase match.
"I think we've seen it ourselves with the big sides which have been
disappointing this year in the European Cup," he said.
"Lazio, Barcelona,
Juventus, Inter Milan - a lot of big guns have gone by the wayside."
The United boss also spoke about a theme which has become topical following Sepp Blatter's recent comments, namely, full-time referees.
He warned there would be a "price to pay" if the Premier League brings in
referees on a full-time basis. FIFA called for the introduction of
professional officials in domestic leagues at a recent meeting in Edinburgh but Ferguson does not believe that referees should work under the same terms as the
players they control.
"If you go full-time, you will have to put them on three to four-year
contracts and what happens if they don't do well or are injured?" he said. |
